Response Rate in Practice

Calculation

Response Rate = (Number of responses / Number of invitees) × 100%

Example: 280 responses out of 1,200 invitees → Response Rate = 23.3%

Benchmarks by Channel

Channel	Typical response rate
SMS / MMS	40-60%
Email (transactional)	25-40%
Email (relationship)	10-25%
In-app / web popup	3-10%
QR code in-store	5-15%

Factors That Reduce Response Rate

• Survey fatigue (too many surveys from the same company)
• Surveys that are too long (over 3-5 minutes)
• Poor mobile optimization
• Generic (non-personalized) invitation
• Lack of communication about what feedback is used for
• Sent on Friday afternoon or Monday morning

Response Rate and Representativeness

A low response rate is not necessarily fatal for data quality, as long as the respondents who do respond are representative of the population. However, the problem arises when there is systematic bias: If only very satisfied or very dissatisfied customers respond, the score is misleading. Therefore, monitor whether there are patterns in which segments respond and which do not.

Communicate the Feedback Loop

The best long-term investment in response rate is communicating what you did with feedback. "Last time you told us X, we did Y." This builds trust and shows responding is worthwhile. In fact, close the loop is not just a retention tool. It is the best response rate driver you have.